Huge blaze at Shrewsbury heating store

A huge fire gutted a Shrewsbury heating store causing thousands of pounds of damage and forcing dozens of people to be evacuated from their homes and a pub.

Smoke was seen billowing from the roof of Mullins Heating in Wenlock Road, Shrewsbury, shortly after 1.45pm yesterday. London Road and Wenlock Road were immediately cordoned off.

They remain closed today. Fire chiefs were making checks to establish when to reopen them.

Staff at the company, which has been running since 1958, said the fire had severely damaged the building and they would have to use emergency premises.

Nobody was hurt in the incident but about 50 people were evacuated from the White Horse pub and 10 nearby houses were also evacuated.

Andy Johnson, area manager for Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service, said fire investigators were trying to establish the cause of the blaze but police were not treating the incident as suspicious.

He said about 50 firefighters tackled the fire and the aerial ladder platform was also used to pour water to douse the flames.

He added the cordon had to remain in place until they were sure that cylinders inside the building had sufficiently cooled.

Mr Johnson said: "We don't know how the fire started but when we first got here there was lots of smoke coming out from the roof space so that is where the investigation will start.

"The damage inside there is pretty comprehensive. The ceiling has burned away and most of the roof has burned away."

Chris Kowalik, a spokesman for West Midlands Ambulance Service, said the fire was spotted by a passing ambulance crew.

Darren Peel, an engineer who has worked at Mullins for about seven years, said the fire had caused significant damage while Graham Mullins, brother of owner Richard Mullins, said his sibling was determined to get the business back on its feet.